Electrical connecter for toy railway tracks



Feb. 7, 1928.

L. CARUSO ELECTRICAL CONNBCTER FOR TOY RAILWAY TRACKS Filed April 15. 1926 INVENTOR 2,, ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 7, 1928.

UNITED STATES 1,658,039 PATENT OFFICE.

LoUr's onnnso, or invinerom-nnw JERSEY, nssienon-ro THE moms conroim- Trotter new YORK, n. Y., A CORPORATION on NEW YORK.

interment oon'nncrnn For. r01 RAILWAY TRACKS.

Application'filed April 15, 1926. Serial No. 102,150.

The present invention relates to electric connectei's for toy railway track and is more "particularly directed toward a c'onnecter suitable *foruse with three rail toy electric railroad tracks inwhich two "or three of the rails are insulated from one another.

I The present invention relates to a connecte'r similar tothat shown in my former fatent No.'1,5 l 2,33'. granted June19, 1925.

This forms-patent shows' a'connecter more particularly designed for, use where only one ofthe rails is insulated. Certain signal systems, suitable "for my railroads, require the insulating "or one of the track "rails "as well'a 's the central rail, while other systems "for operating toy ran'rdaa'cars require that all three he i'nsulatedfrohi" one another. It

' 'theilefore 'becomesnecessa'ry to provide elec- "trical'connections for 'eachof the rails.

object of the present "invention "is to p'rovide'a unitary connectencapable ofbeing possible embodiments in which the present invention may take form, it being understood that the drawing is illustrative ofthe "inyention rather than lii'niting'the same.

In these drawings: I Figure lis a top plan view of a section of toy railroad track showing the connecter disposed in the position occupied when it is'connect ed'to the track, portions'ot the track being broken away;

Figures 2, 3 and 4: are sections on broken lines 2-2, 3 3, and H, respectively of Figure 1, it being assumed that 'the connectar has been locked om-0 the track; and

Figure '5'is aperspe'c'tive'view of a convenient form of wire receiving terminal.

In thedrawings, a portionof a section of toy railroad track isshown. The three rails 10, 11, 'and 12 are mounted on the cross ties or sleepers 13 and 14: in the usual manner. As heife shown, 'all three of the rails are hi sulated from the cross ties or sleepers by the insulations 14. These *sections are usedin the toy track lay-outin any desired manner, and as tar as the present-invention'is concerned, it is unnecessary to have track 'in which both of the track rails are insulated from the cross ties. y

A block or heavy rigid sheet-of insulation 15 carries the contacts and wire receiving terminals of the connecter. As shown a comparatively long flat strip 16 ofsheet inetal is fastenedfto the insulating block near one, end, and a shorter 5 strip 17 is fastened to the insulatingqblo'ck near the other "end.

The strip 16 is adapted to "pass underneath theirfails 1( ),:11 a n d 12 11 1 isjprovidedhith a hooked end 18 to engage --tlie base 19 of "rail 10. At ashort distance iroin the hook'ed 'endgof the strap, it is bent down as indi'cat ed a "20 so as to place the time "some distance below the flanges 22 and 216i rails Hand 12. The strip 16 after passing underneath these rails is bent upwardly, as indicated, at 23, to bring it against the lower surface 24 of the insulating block 1.5. nasuien carried along this surface for 'a short distance,

and is then bent upwardly fa's shown *at 25, so as to pass through the block. The strip then extends along "the top o f the block, as indicated'at 26, and is bent to form a loop 27. The free end of the loop is passed through insulating'block 15 and bent against the lower sideof"the blockfas indicated at 28. The side walls "ofthe loop 27 are apertured at 29."and a spring 30 is fastened to the strap by being passed underneath a i'aised portion 31 and caught over anhpstruck projection32. The spring 30 may be bent downwardly toward the plate 'so as to receive the connecting wires in the usual manner. In order that the strip 16 may be insulated from the rails 11 and 12, a strip 33 of insulating sheet material is mounted as indicated. This strip has a hole 3& through which th e shoulder 20 of the conductingstrip 16 passes. The lower "end of the insulating strip is cut back as shown at 35 to engage the shoulder 23. The ends 36 of the insulating strip extend alongside the conducting strip 16 so "as to hold the insulatingstrip in place.

a shorter piece 38 of insulating material is used to insulate it from the lower track rail 11. This conducting strip is provided with a wire receiving terminal 39 similar to the one previously described in detail.

The third conducting strip 40 is, as here shown, placed in the middle of the insulating block 15. A hollow rivet il is passed through the block 15, conducting strip 40 and a locking lever 42 so as to fasten the conducting strip onto the insulating bloclr and pivotally support the locking lever.

The lower end of the conducting strip 40,

scribed in detail.

as illustrated in the drawing, is provided with a. terminal 43 similar to the one de- The upper end of the conducting strip 40 is bent downwardly as indicated at 4A, and extends a short distance beyond the upper edge of the insulating block so-as to come underneath the flange 22 of the'lower track rail 11. The end of the locking lever 45 adjacent this track rail is bent upwardly as indicated so as to pass over the upper side of the flange. The locking lever is bent upwardly and provides an operating end 46 which clears the wiring receiving terminal 48 so that it may be swung from the full line position to the dot and dash line position where it is brought against a stop '47.

The electrical connecter composed of the insulating support and conducting 'strips forms a unitary article which may be attached to or detached from the tracks readily. The longer conductors are passed underneath the track and the hooked ends 18 and 37 engaged about the flanges of the remote rails, and then the locking member 40v is swung into the full line position. By using this device one may readily connect wires and other devices to any one of the rails or to any pair ofrails selected.

It is obvious that the invention may be embodied in many forms and constructions,v

and Ijwish it to be understood that the particular form shown is but one of the many forms. .Various modifications and changes being possible, I do not limit myself in any way with respect thereto.

I claim: 7

1. A detachable connector for conducting current to the three. rails of toy railroad track, comprising, an insulating block adapted to be carried alongside one of the track rails, three conductors of different lengths attached. to the insulating block and extending laterally therefrom, the two longer conductors having hook shaped ends to engage the central rail and theopposite track rail, and the shorter conductor having a looking device engageable with the nearer track rail to lock the connecter in place, and wire receiving terminals carried by the insulating block, and connected with each conductor.

2. A detachable connecter for conductingtoy railroad track.

current to the three rails of toy railroad track, comprisn' g, an insulating block adapted to be carried alongside one of the track rails, three conductors of different tween the longer conductors and having a locking device engageable with the nearer track rail to lock the connecter in place, and wire receiving terminals carried by the insulating block and connected with each conductor. i

3. A detachable connecter for conducting current to the three rails of toy railroad track, comprising, an insulating block adapted to he carried alongside one of the track rails, three conductors of different lengths attached to the insulating block and extending laterally therefrom, the two longer conductors having hook shaped endsto engage the central rail and the opposite track rail, and the shorter conductor having a locking device engageable with the nearer track rail to lock the connecter in place, wire receiving terminals carried by the insulating block and connected with each conductor, and insulating strips carried by the longer conductors to separate them from the rails.

4. An electrical connecter for three rail toy electric railroad track comprising an insulating plate carrying three contacts of different lengths, the longest contact being so disposed that it may pass under the three rails and having a hook to engage the rail remote from the plate, the shortest contact being engageable with the nearest rail and the other contact havinga hook engageable with the middle rail. r

5. An electrical connecter for three rail toy electric railroad track comprising an insulating'plate carrying three contactso difterent lengths, the longest contact being so disposed that it may pass under the'three rails and, having a hook to engage the rail remote from the plate, the shortest, contact being engageable with the nearest rail and the other contact having a hook engageable with the middle rail, and means associated with the shortest contact for locking the connecter in place.

6, In electrical connectors for toy electric railroad track, an insulating plate having a conducting strip carried thereby, said strip having a portion disposed on the upper side of the plate, the strip passing through the plate and having a second portion disposed on the opposite side of the plate and extending beyond the edge of the plate, the first portion having a wire receiving terminal and the secondportion having a hookedend adapted to engage the base of the rail of-the 7. In electrical connecters for toy electric railroad track, an insulating plate having a conducting strip carried thereby, said strip havinga portion disposed on the upper side of the plate, the strip passing through the plate and having a second portion disposed on the opposite side of the plate and extend ing beyond the edge of the plate, the first portion having a wire receiving terminal and the second portion having a hooked end adapted to engage the base of the rail of the toy railroad track, and an insulating strip covering the upper side of the second portion of the conducting strip.

8. In combination, a section of toy railroad track having at least two rails insulated from one another and from the supporting cross ties, a unitary device detachable from the track section and having three independent wire receiving terminals insulated from one another and connected with conducting strips of different lengths, each strip being shaped to connect a terminal with a selected rail so that all three rails may be connected to the terminals.

9. An electrical connecter for three rail toy railroad track, having three conducting strips each cooperable with one of the rails only, an insulating support -it'or all three strips, and means for detachably locking the connecter in place.

Signed at Irvington, in the county of Essex, and State of New Jersey, this 6th day of April, 1926.

LOUIS GARUSO. 

